A Browse through Bridlemile

by Ginger Danzer

Download BNAWBtB2.pdf,327KB 327KB - a keyed map and numbered description of the "A Browse thru Bridlemile" walk.

---

A Browse thru Bridlemile, by Ginger Danzer

Photographs by Victor von Salza

Begin your walk at the play structure at Hamilton Park(1).

The Bridlemile Neighborhood Association under the direction of Linda Bonder constructed the play structure in 2001.

Walk west to the Bridlemile school play ground and admire the new play structure(2)

which was funded and installed by parents in April 2006.

Continue along the east side of the school past the covered basketball court and admire the new planters and trees(3)

on the south side of the building, another new feature funded and installed by the school parents. These plantings are designed to shade the south side of the school in order to keep the classrooms cooler on hot days.

Retrace your steps back to the purple play structure(2) and walk on the path along the north side of the school. During the school year (after classes are out) take a look in the windows(4) at the big blue balls sitting by/on each desk. Students are using the balls as seats, testing to see if they provide better posture and health (the balls are deflated for the summer). Notice the rain barrels(4)

that are used for recycling rainwater for use in the garden.

To the right of the path enjoy the colorful fish(5) decorating the cyclone fence above the wall.

They are the result of a 2005-2006 student art project.

Next wander toward the entrance to the school, read the plaque and rest on one of the marble benches(6).

To the left of the front doors, enjoy the tile wall(7)

designed and produced by students.

Cross the parking lot to 47th drive and walk south to Hamilton and turn west (right). Hamilton was originally called Hess Road. At the corner of Hamilton and Shattuck is the famous Tigard/Rogers House(8), one of the oldest homes in Oregon.

It was built in 1853 or 1854 by Andrew Tigard, who had the Donation Land Claim for this land. The house was sold to Edward and Esther Rogers in 1875. The Rogers farmed here for many years. The house is currently owned by Roger Hancock, great-grandson of Edward and Esther Rogers. Read the Plaque on the beautiful Ponderosa Pine(9). This is a Heritage Tree, a famous Portland tree. It is very old.

Across the street and down a bit from the corner was the old Fairvale Store(10). The Fairvale Store eventually moved down to the intersection of Shattuck and Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway and Mr. Rogers sold it to Albertsons.

Turn north on Shattuck and walk to 4402 SW Shattuck(11) which is known as the Long House because the Long family lived in it the longest! The Long family farmed this side of Hamilton for many years. Annette Long Stone still lives on Hamilton on the land her father gave her when she got married.

Walk on up Shattuck to Lowell. Turn east (right) and walk to the path just past the mailbox at 4766. Go down the path and steps to the Ivey Creek Bridge(12),

admire Ivey Creek,

which flows into Fanno Creek. Ivey is not misspelled, the Ivey family were long time Bridlemile residents.

Then go up the steps and left onto SW 48th Place. At the end of 48th Place turn northeast (right) on Lowell to SW 45th. The brick house with the lovely grounds on the corner is the old Walther home built in 1946(13).

The Walthers farmed 68 acres all the way down to Hamilton. There is still an operating well here(14).

The Lopez Family who live there take meticulous care of the home.

Follow SW 45th north (left) to Tunnelwood. Go east (right, your only option) strolling though Bridlewood to SW 43rd. Turn north (left and go up to the path that connects to the next part of Tunnelwood. Before going on that path look left at the path that connects Bridlewood to Montmore(15). It’s fun to go down and check out Ivey Creek(16) here.

Montmore’s lovely but it is not on this walk. Go up that path and get on Tunnelwood again.

The Crawford Sawmill(17) was just about at 40th and Tunnelwood. No sign of a sawmill now.

Walk up Ericwood which is a dead end street. Watch for the cement blocks across the street from 3730 SW Ericwood that mark the second path(18) to Montmore. The Montmore loop is an option for your walk. The steep path and street are good exercise.

Walk up Tunnelwood to Jerald. Turn south (right) on Jerald Way. Notice the handsome espalier(19)

and admire the Haleston home(20).

Turn left on Jerald Court then right back onto Jerald Way. The houses on this street are among the first built in Bridlemile. At the junction of Jerald Way and Bridlemile Lane take time to look at the house at 3500 Bridlemile Lane, this is the Powell/Belluschi home(21).

Photo by www.360.com
Ruth and John Powell bought this land in 1947. Ruth Powell chose the name Bridlemile for our neighborhood. There is a relationship to the famed architect, Belluschi, but it is murky.

Turn west (right) on Bridlemile Lane. There are more stories about some of these houses that are waiting to be explored. One of them was a General Electric model, a fully electric home!

Continue down Bridlemile Lane. There is a Deciduous Redwood(22) at about 36th and Bridlemile Lane.
The street swings right and up the hill after crossing the soon to be named Bridlemile Creek it winds up to Jerald Court. Turn west (left) walk to SW 40th Place. Turn south (left) and go down Bancroft to 47th Drive. Turn south (left) onto SW 47th and back to Hamilton Park.

Follow the path along the east side of the tennis courts into the wood to get a peek at Bridlemile Creek(23),

which the Bridlemile Creek Stewards have restored.

Back past the tennis court are a bench and swing, where you can sit on the bench and enjoy the view or go for a swing. Finally head back to the play structure(1), and that's the end of this Browse through Bridlemile.

Fall Color Walk

Although we're not Vermont there's still plenty of great Fall color in Bridlemile which peaks during the month from about mid-October to mid-November... with some color visible earlier and hanging on later.

Along SW 52nd Pl. 11/4/2006, photo by Victor von Salza

Download and print the

Bridlemile Fall Color Walk Map, BNAWFCM.pdf,272KB 272KB

Just walking the whole route can take 2-3hours - start by adding your home on the map and choose one or more connections to the loop on the Fall Color Map which break it into two or more pieces or routes.

Fall color is always changing and each walk will reveal new gems along the route. And repeating all or part of the walk but in the opposite direction reveals new views and sights too...

So get out with your camera and capture scenes like this

Corner of SW Admiral St and SW 37th Ave. 11/6/2006, photo by Victor von Salza

before its all turns to this

fallen leaves. 11/6/2006, photo and image processing by Victor von Salza

Spring Color Walk

Spring color which runs from late February thru June is more spread out in time than Fall color which starts in late September and is over by the end of November. So while you won't see as much color in every block that you walk there is still much too see and enjoy.

From large uniform bands of colors

and textures

to beautiful palettes of varied color and texture

to a single plant with only two colors and textures; there's lots to see along the route of the Fall Color Map which you can download from here.

Photographs Spring 2007 by Victor von Salza

SW Bridlemile Notable Homes Walking Tour

Bridlemile has many notable homes, homes of historical and architectural interest. This walking tour includes notable homes located in the southwest section of Bridlemile.

History and descriptions by Ginger Danzer. Photographs, walking instructions and map by Victor von Salza.

Click to display and resize the Google Map showing the homes and walking route.

Please respect people's property and privacy as you take your walk. We do NOT have permission from the home owners to view their properties, so please do NOT trespass on their or neighboring properties to get a better view, etc.

SW 52nd (between SW Hamilton and SW Santa Monica Ct) is a good place to park and begin the walk. From there head south to SW Hamilton St and turn right / head West . The Terrill Bungalow is the 2nd home on the right.

Terrill Bungalow 5233 SW Hamilton Street

The Terrill Bungalow

The Terrill house, a bungalow, was built in 1905. The original owner was Glen Foulkes, other owners were Samuel Holm and W.A. and Leona L. Malston. Bernice Terrill lived in the house from 1944 until 1996. The current owners are her grandson, David Terrill and his wife Maria-Eugenia. The house has a medium pitch composition hip roof with exposed rafters, gabled dormer with exposed rafters, and shingle siding. Mrs. Terrill was a speech and drama teacher at Columbia Prep High school.

The shoulder is wider on the south side of Hamilton, so cross the street and continue West. The 2nd street on the right is SW 55th Place, turn right/head North. The Robertson/Tabata home is the third house on the right at the corner /end of the block.

Robertson/Tabata Home 4404 SW 55th Place

The Robertson/Tabata Home.

This Queen Anne style home was built in 1905. The architectural plans were by Robertson who was also the original owner. It has hip and bell cast gable roofs and an encircling porch with a corner gable. The oval front windows were donated by I. Lang from his former home on the south Park Blocks. This is the site of the original family home of A. Robertson which burned down. The home was owned by Ariel and Eleanor Rubstein. Ariel, a noted musician, made adaptations for a music room. He brought well known artists to Portland. Issac Stern stayed here and played the piano in the music room. Ariel’s daughter, Ariel Deborah Rubstein was a nationally known vocalist. Karen Tabata recalls the time an ambulance brought an elderly and frail Ariel Rubstein to see his beloved home and beautiful trees once more. Mr. Rubstein died the following day. That same day one of the huge old trees split and fell to the ground.

Retrace your steps to Hamilton and turn right/ head West. Walk along the South side of Hamilton about 600 yards to the 3rd street on the right which is SW Semler Way. Turn right, the Semler/Elsasser home is the 2nd on the right. This home still retains its original SW Hamilton address.

Semler/Elsasser Home 6215 Hamilton (on Semler Way between 4426 and 4332)

The Semler/Elsasser Home.

Herbert and Shirley Semler built this home in 1969. The style is called New Formalism. Architectural plans were by Walter Gordon, John Hinchliff and Dan McDoowin. A flat roof and an exterior of finished white cement plaster with large fixed plate glass windows made it stand out. It originally had a porte cochere. In 1984 it had double entrance doors of hand carved walnut by Leroy Setzoil. The current owner, Robert Elsasser said those doors were gone when he bought the home. Major alterations were made in 1978 by Fletcher, Finch and Farr.

Retrace your steps to Hamilton cross the street and turn right/head West; the Cooper/Georges Home is the second on the right.

Cooper/Georges Home 6248 SW Hamilton

The Cooper/Georges Home.

This Twentieth Century Colonial home was built in 1924. The original owner was Cooper, a truck farmer, who owned 25 acres. He built the road in front of his house from Scholls Ferry to Shattuck naming it Cooper Road. Pear trees are original. A long time owner of the property was Thomas Georges. It is currently being remodeled as part of an assisted living property. Special features include a long overhanging gable roof with narrow bargeboard. The windows are six-over-one, double hung. A diamond window is in the gable end. Wooded lattice flank a protruding rounded gable over a three paneled door. It has a massive brick chimney. The east portion of the house was altered and a covered patio was added. The Georges owned a large tract of land which was farmed.

The Cooper/Georges home is being converted into an assisted living complex.

Continue West on Hamilton until your reach SW 63rd, cross the street and head north on 63rd. At the second street on the left, SW Bancroft, turn left/head West. The Rosenfeld/Carter Home is second from the corner on the right .

Rosenfeld/Carter Home 6432 SW Bancroft

The Rosenfeld/Carter Home.

The noted architect Wade Pipes built this Northwest Regional house for Gladys Rosenfeld in 1950 on a large parcel of land. It had a long driveway and could not be seen from Scholls Ferry or Hamilton. It has a medium-pitch gable roof and dormers with close eaves. Board-and-batten is combined with vertical tongue-and-groove siding. There are side lighted casement windows and a recessed front door. The house is on the Ray estate. I. Lang, Gladys Rosenfeld’s father, owned Pleasant View dairy on Dosch Road which later became Elco Dairy. He started Lang Brothers Grocery on the south side of 1st and Ankeny in 1886. After Mrs. Rosenfeld’s death the land was developed into Clarion. Lovely gardens surround this elegant home. Regan Carter is the current owner of the home.

Retrace your steps to Hamilton street and turn right/head West. At SW Scholls Ferry turn left and go one block to SW Hamilton Way. Note there is an informal dirt path to the left of the ditch along SW Scholls Ferry. At SW Hamilton Way turn left/head East, the Gittelson/Evans home is the last house on the right.

Gittelson/Evans Home 6260 SW Hamilton Way

The Gittelson/Evans Home.

Well-known John Storrs was the architect for this Northwest Regional house. It was built in 1955 by William and Shirley Gittelson. Shirley Gittelson, a well known Portland artist, was the daughter of Thomas Georges. Her father gave each of his children a lot for their home. This house is on the original site of the barn. It is built of concrete block and vertical tongue-and-groove siding. It has a log-pitch gable, a tar-and-gravel roof, fixed windows and a center chimney. On an exterior wall in the garden area outside the downstairs is a lion head. The lion’s head came from one of the first OMSI Auctions. The second and current owners are Scott and Claire Evans.

Turn around and face north to see the Marcus home which is directly across the street from the Gittelson/Evans home.

Marcus Home 6255 SW Hamilton Way

The Marcus Home.

This is the second Northwest Regional house on the walk. Stanley and Susan Marcus built the house in 1968 and are the current owners. The architect was Alec Pierce. Special features include a low-pitch gable roof and vertical tongue-and-groove siding. A high wooden fence surrounds the patio.

Marcus Home looking back from further East on Hamilton Way.

Continue East along the path that follows the right of way on SW Hamilton Way. The grass can get pretty tall in the late Spring and the path is quite uneven in places. The Feldman/Brown home is the next home on the left at the corner of SW Hamilton Way and SW Seymour St.

Feldman/Brown Home 6141 SW Seymour Street

The Feldman/Brown Home.

Philip and Marianne Feldman built this Northwest Regional home in 1956. The architect was Saul Zaik. It has a cantilevered, low-pitched gable rook and vertical tongue-and-groove resawn cedar siding. The windows are fixed with an occasional operable sash. The original cedar shingle roof was replaced by composition shingles and a wing was added in 1980. In June 1957 the house earned an “Award of Merit” by the Oregon Chapter of the AIA for professional excellence by the architect. Alterations were made in 1960 by Jack Shimshak Co. The home is listed in the 1957 issue of “Pacific Architect and Builder”. Darin Brown is the current owner.

Turn left onto SW Seymour St, then left again on SW 60th. Between the third and fourth homes from the corner on the right you will be standing under a large Elm, one of two heritage trees in Bridlemile.

The Heritage Elm Tree on SW 60th Place.

Click here to see and read more about Bridlemile''s heritage trees.

Continue North on SW 60th Place, at Hamilton turn right/head East and walk about 600 yards back to the starting point on SW 52nd (the 4th street on the left).

Thank you to everyone who has generously shared information about their homes. If you have stories, photos, or know some more of the history for any of these homes please contact Ginger Danzer. Click here to read about the July 12, 2007 walking tour that Ginger Danzer lead along this route.